Fake news has been at the forefront of public debate since November 2016, when it was discovered that thousands of fake news articles may have affected the outcome of the US federal election. Journalists discovered …

The beat Rifles in the streets? Around 50 NSW riot squad officers have been issued with semi-automatic assault rifles—Colt M4 Carbines, to be exact. Intended to be deployed in terror incidents, the officers could also …

Sea state During his visit to Beijing, Australia’s Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Tim Barrett, was formally rebuked by his Chinese counterpart. Chinese Navy commander Shen Jinlong condemned the Australian Navy for having ‘compromised the …

The beat Drugs in flames The Pakistani Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) held its 2017 drug-burning ceremony in Islamabad. In the presence of national officials and international representatives such as the UN Office of Drugs and Crime …

The beat Andromeda defeated A collaboration between the FBI, various European crime and cyber crime investigators, Europol, Eurojust and private-sector partners has ‘dismantled one of the longest running malware families in existence’, the Andromeda botnet. …

Foreign policy white paper and WPS In late November, Australia released its first foreign policy white paper since 2003. While Katrina Lee-Koo has acknowledged that it represents a ‘step in the right direction’ in terms …

The beat Austerity analysis Barry Loveday from the University of Portsmouth has sounded the alarm about declining police numbers in England and Wales in his analysis of the recently released state of policing report. He …

The beat Open letter against domestic abuse The Lochaber and Skye Police in Scotland has received praise for a series of tweets it published to express its support for women trapped in situations of domestic …

Sea state Attention is back on the South China Sea as China and ASEAN officially announced negotiations on the text of a code of conduct in the disputed waterway. There’s little optimism that the negotiations …